Come Guide My Sword
by Apirant
Summary: I've always been a sword guy. I don't really think, I just swing and they die. And for the depths of Firestorm Citadel, I found a pro I'm not going to forget any time soon.
1. Depth 29

Clawsword gives thanks.

"No problem."

Then she swiftly left. I climbed to the top to stare at the core from the horizon. Knights before have gathered here to stay in this laggy and special place. Should they ever go to the edge, they cannot help but look down.

And I.

I was a loner.

And I knew two knights who would sit at that edge for hours.

But I don't believe in online relationships. Yet here I stood... with a little regret. A little empty. And the feeling of just being there.

My name is Clawsword. I started this game in December. And I got this far in an mmo for once, with some help. Right now, I'm holding a Divine Avenger and a newly-crafted Triglav. Special thanks to /deleted/.


	2. Depth 26

FSC stands for Firestorm Citadel. It's the home of the last boss and the best place for farming crowns. When you visit, you'll find an abundance of undead zombies, cursed to forever spawn and wander the depths of an imaginative hell. You'll probably find more about the story behind it like I did- through the wiki.

But you'll probably find yourself fighting its monsters a lot sooner than you think.

With Avenger in hand, I faced off with the trios of flaming blockheads in the vast room. There I strafed ever so nervously with no vitapod equipped. With the heavy swings I put forward, I challenged the slow but ever so dangerous creatures. All monsters before this were but a joke to my blade. Now, my blade was a joke to them. As the second slash came to follow up the first, its edge died short. They didn't flinch.

No.

Its claws dug right into my best gear. The burns are something you don't forget. If the claws didn't get you, the after-blaze will. Don't let the small numbers fool you. Those last few seconds of the status condition are your last.

But the stakes were higher. You see, death has a different meaning in Firestorm Citadel. When you die in depth 26, you die alone. You'll understand it when the time comes.

However, she was there as my only teammate in this fiery pit. Before I watched another zombie fall, I saw myself back onto my feet. And there, she stood with me like a savior.

Time and time again, I carelessly lost myself in the challenges that took us. But she did not ever leave me dead for long.

I came to trust her. Rarely did I find myself on the other end, over her body. She was the most valuable partner. Always there. Always ready. I believed her when she said she soloed fsc with proto.


	3. Leave the Guild

We traded stories. She was a loner, but she found someone precious. Someone who believed in her when times were grim. He was a loner too. So they kept a strong bond. A bond I'd never know.

Skilled and adept as she is, she seeks for a partner to satisfy her need of "teamwork." I, a knight who gambles his luck in battle too often, never felt competent enough to squarely stand beside her. I owned the Avenger after all. It's a heavy weapon that knocks back enemies too far to be any use for a teammate.

Still, I gave her my name. I tried to comfort her. She was still stuck in those grim times, even when everyone else was not. It was a past where I did not take part. And... maybe.

Maybe it was a future I'll never take a part in now.

Soon enough, I armored myself in the rewards of fsc- the armor and helm of the Ancient. It sacrifices speed for health. I ranked up. I could solo fsc myself now. Like the loner I was, I distanced myself away from /deleted/ by never asking to do another fsc mission, all the while trying to take her away from her past.

She made it all too easy. Loners tend to do that. She deleted me, as well as many other contacts I believe. She wandered through the foreign havens.


	4. Find your Haven

I still consider her my best friend in SK.

I wandered the foreign havens. It was easy. They're vacant compared to the US havens. There's not so many havens.

"Are you still going to **part**?"

To part away. To delete your friends. It probably doesn't make sense. She wanted to be alone. Many wanted her to stay.

And for a time in this conflict, she sent me a friend invite. I accepted.

I don't think she plans to part anymore. By this time, I've farmed fsc to craft armor of my own. I left my Ash Tail set untouched. I took up a Chaos set. I referred to its weaknesses as massive allergies to all weather- fire, ice, shock, poison, and curse. In return, I could max out my weapon's damage and its charge.

This is what I could call the best gear. Yet still, I stayed for a month. Farming away at fsc and its boss. I found myself becoming a soloer, something she resented for she always wanted "teamwork."


	5. Walk in Stone

I think she finally accepted her friends, me, and that other knight.

So why did I delete her? She joined me at the floor before the final boss and she proved true to her skill. She carried a Plague Needle and I without a Blitz to heat my Triglav. She took down the final boss while I slashed away at the fire zombies. She swiftly left. She didn't know about my endgame.

I've met my endgame. I don't care about my unfinished Ash Tail set. I don't care about the Shadow Lair anymore. I don't care about any other gear. I am cloaked in Chaos. Protected by a Divine Avenger and a Barbarous Thorn Shield. I've fought and I've died. May my avatar rest in the fiery hell of Firestorm Citadel. With this heavy blade, I'll challenge whoever comes forth.

Does that make me a Trojan? Clawsword.


End file.
